* 23 buildings, 15 vehicles destroyed
* FG expresses sympathy
The Director General of Lagos Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Dr Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, has confirmed that 30 persons were injured, 23 buildings and 15 vehicles destroyed in the Iju-Ishaga tanker explosion.
Oke-Osanyintolu made the disclosure after putting out the fire at about 6:00pm on Thursday in Lagos.
According to him, the post disaster assessment regarding Iju-Ishaga is as follows: Two residential buildings, one Church, one Event Centre, four commercial buildings, a market consisting of 15 shanty shops, 11 cars, two mini trucks, one bus, one heavy duty truck were destroyed.
Oke-Osanyintolu said this brought the total number of properties destroyed to 23 buildings and 15 vehicles.
He said the inferno had been put out completely, while a total of 30 casualties recorded in the accident consisted of 20 adult males and 10 adult females.
He said the agency responded to the distress calls concerning the tanker explosion, which was confirmed that 30 tonnes of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) Tanker being operated by Mana Gas Ltd was involved in an explosion, which destroyed several vehicles, X and Y Event Centre and a plank market in that axis.
The LASEMA boss said responders discovered that a compromised seal device by the truck driver had led to gradual leakage, which ignited when the tyres burst.
He said that 28 of the injured victims had been taken to various hospitals including Iju Waterworks Clinic, while the remaining two victims, who were in critical condition, had been referred to General Hospital, Ikeja.
He, however, said that responders at the scene of incidence were: LASEMA combined responders, the agency’s Tiger Squad, LRU paramedics, LRU fire team, LASG fire service, Nigerian Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Nigerian Police Force (NPF), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and Red Cross.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajiya Sadiya Farouq, has expressed deep sadness after a gas tanker exploded in Lagos, injuring over 50 persons and razing several buildings and vehicles.
The minister sympathized with the injured and those who lost their homes to the inferno during the incident which occurred on Thursday at Cele Bus Stop, Iju-Ishaga, Lagos State.
“I am deeply saddened by this tragic incident especially as this is coming just six months after the explosion in Abule Ado in March.
“The Federal government sympathises with the affected families and persons and has directed the immediate despatch of rescue operations by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) with combined assistance from the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency LASEMA to evacuate the injured to hospitals and provide immediate relief for displaced persons.
“Our prayers are with the government and the good people of Lagos state at this time of grief,” Farouq said.